Community Advocate- DV Co-; Bilingual

Sarah’s Inn is a community-based non‑profit organization whose mission is to improve the lives of those affected by domestic violence and to break the cycle of violence for future generations. Our services and initiatives focus on ending relationship violence through domestic violence crisis intervention, community education, and violence prevention programs for youth.

Job Title:

Community Advocate: DV Co‑Located Advocate

Department:
Intervention/Community Advocacy

Reports To:

Community Advocacy Program Supervisor

FLSA status:
Exempt/Full‑time

The goal of the Domestic Violence Co‑Location Program (DVCLP) is to enhance the effectiveness of the child welfare interventions into the lives of families experiencing domestic violence. The Community Advocate for the DVCLP is responsible for providing support to both child welfare professionals working with families experiencing domestic violence and to all members of the family experiencing domestic violence and child welfare interventions.

This position partners with DCFS to specifically target the shared goals of the domestic violence community and DCFS to end violence in Illinois families, reduce risk, enhance the safety of adult and child survivors, foster offender accountability, support parental strengths and protective capacities, and improve outcomes for children and families experiencing domestic violence in the child welfare system that promote safety, stability, wellbeing and healing.

The Community Advocate will aim to improve communication and coordination among child welfare and other community‑based services and systems. The Community Advocate reports to the Community Advocacy Program Supervisor, will work closely with the Associate Director on the DVCLP, and will work collaboratively with our Intervention team.

• Provide consultation to child welfare professionals. The purpose of the consultation is to help build the capacity of child welfare professionals to adequately understand and interpret the dynamics and impact of the domestic violence on the family, and to craft effective interventions that enhance the safety, stability, wellbeing and healing of all members of the family.
• Provide expert guidance, advice, professional opinions, and strategies related to domestic violence based upon the information gathered at the point of the intervention to child welfare workers
• Provide guidance on questions for the child welfare worker to ask and information to gather.
• Identify each parent/adult as either the adult survivor or parent using violence and coercive control (PUVCC)
• Provide expertise in identifying the following: (1) the perpetrator’s pattern of coercive control and battering tactics, and power and control, (2) the dynamics of domestic violence present in the particular home, and (3) the immediate and future safety risks to the adult and child survivors.
• Identify the potential options for safety strategies.
• Identify the adult survivor’s strengths and protective efforts, and collaboratively build interventions that enhance these strengths and foster protective factors.
• Identify precautionary measures that the adult survivor took.
• Analyze the impact of the perpetrator’s violence on the children and risk of harm.
• Determine high risk indicators for intimate partner homicide.
• Provide coverage on the 24‑hour crisis line during business hours (will be assigned shifts) and assistance with on‑call.

• The DVLCA will engage with all members of the families to provide information about child welfare, support and education on domestic violence, domestic violence safety planning, crisis intervention, advocacy, expedited access to domestic violence services, and referral to other community or social services.
• Direct contact with families may occur in the survivor’s home in accordance with the Home Visiting Policy, shelter, DCFS Office, Child and Family Team Meeting, partner Domestic Violence Agency, or other safe location.
• Update and maintain database for project and provide reports as needed.
• Ensure appropriate releases are signed in…